Air France pilots cancel strike

Just hours ahead of the start of a controversial month-long strike, France’s main pilots union has called it off. The SNPL union said it has received assurance that airlines in France would not be permitted to draft in pilots from other countries to cope with industrial action.

Air France-KLM had denounced the scale of the protest as “contemptuous”. The strike would have involved stoppages of several hours every day from May 3 to May 30.

Pilots said their strike threat had come after easyJet had recruited replacement pilots from other countries, using a law requiring 48-hour notice of strike action.

“This is excellent news for both Air France customers and staff,” Air France chief executive Frederic Gagey said in a statement.

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